Moshe Schnitzer, dean of the Israeli diamond industry, has passed away at age 86. He died late Thursday, and his funeral was held Friday. Attending the funeral were many dignitaries, including Chief Rabbis Shlomo Amar and Yonah Metzger, as well as President Shimon Peres, all of whom spoke glowingly about Schnitzer's contributions to Israeli life.

Schnitzer was born in Chernovich, Romania in 1921, and arrived in Israel in 1934. In addition to developing his own diamond business, Schnitzer was largely responsible for establishing the Israeli diamond industry and developing the diamond exchange complex in Ramat Gan, which was named after him in 2002.